Hydraulic leveling device for threshing-machine shoes.



A. HOVLAND.

HYDRAULIC LBVELING DEVICE FOR THRESHING MACHINE SHOES. APPLICATION Minn JAN. a, 1911.

1,035,1 93. Patented Aug. 13,1912.

4 8EEBTSBHEET 1.

A. HOVLAND.

HYDRAULIC LEVELING DEVICE FOR THRBSHING MACHINE SHOES.

APPLICATION TILED JAN. 3, 1011.

, 1 ,Q35,1 93 Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

4 SHBETBSHEET 2.

A. HOVLAND.

HYDRAULIC LEVELING DEVICE FOR THRESHING MACHINE SHOES.

, AIPLIOATION FILED JAN. 3, 1911, 7 1,035, 1 93. Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

'.--.-..-....-..- -...-..---.---------.nunmlslv' wizzessesf kwezzfoz',"

0 0M l 'ZZZSAZ OZ' 5,

A. HOVLAND. HYDRAULIC LEVELING DEVICE FOR THRBSHING MACHINE SHOES.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.3, 1911. 1 ,035, 1 93. Patented Aug. 13, 1912.

' Wzzesses! 1: 616ml;

COLUMBIA PLANDGIIAFI! 00., WAQHINUTON- D- C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AUGUST I-IOVLAND, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

HYDRAULIC LEVELING DEVICE FOR THRESHING-MACHINE SHOES.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AUGUST HovLAND, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hydraulic Leveling Devices for Threshing-Machine Shoes; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to threshing machines, but more particularly to so-called traveling threshers of the type disclosed and claimed in my prior Patent 894,439 of date July 28, 1908. In my said prior patent, I disclosed and broadly claimed a hydraulic leveling device arranged to automatically maintain a predetermined level or approximate level of sieves or screens carried by a supplemental frame or shoe having an oscillatory movement in respect to the main frame of the machine. In the said priorpatent, the hydraulic leveling device was shown as arranged to operate directly on the said pivoted supplemental frame for maintaining the level thereof longitudinally of the machine, and the level of the said supplemental shoe transversely of the machine was taken care of by mounting the entire case of the threshing machine so that it would be gravity held in an upright or arighted position.

My present invention has nothing to do with the mounting of the machine case for lateral swinging movements, but is directed to the improvement of the hydraulic leveling device for maintaining the level of the supplemental frame or sieve shoe longitudinally of the machine and, in this improved hydraulic leveling device, the hydraulic force, instead of being used directly, is used indirectly and is caused to control the action of a reversible power-driven adjusting device. In this way, the work which the hydraulic feature must perform is reduced to a minimum, and the use of a small amount of liquid is not only made possible, but highly eflicient in its action.

Generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of deviceshereinafter described and defined in the claims.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed January 3, 1911.

Patented Aug. 13,1912.

Serial No. 600,418.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a view partly in side elevation but with parts broken away and with numerous parts shown in vertical longitudinal section; Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section taken on the line m m of Fig. 1, showing the parts on a larger scale than in the former noted view, and some parts being broken away; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section taken approximately on the line :0 m of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a plan view showing a reversely acting pawl and ratchet device which forms a part of the connection for adjusting the supplemental frame or shoe and which is subject to the action of the hydraulic controller; and Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 4, some parts being sectioned and some parts being broken away.

The numeral 1 indicates the case of the threshing machine, which case is supported in any suitable way from rear wheels 2 and.

from front wheels not shown. forking within the case 1 is an endless straw carrier 3, an endless chaff carrier 4 and an endless rattle rake 5. Between the straw carrier 3 and chaff carrier 4 is the usual inclined deck (3. An inclined deck '7 extends under the rattle rake 5. The straw, after passing from the thresher cylinder and concave, not shown, will be carried upward over the deck 6 by the carrier 3 and will be delivered onto the rattle rake 5. The grain dropped through the deck 6 will be elevated by the carrier 4 and, together with the grain discharged from the lower end of the deck7, will be delivered onto the receiving member of a separating mechanism proper made up of one or more vibratory sieves or screens and, preferably, also, certain other cooperating parts mounted on a supplemental frame which, as already indicated, is held level longitudinally of the machine by my improved hydraulically controlled leveling device. This supplemental frame, which is indicated as an entirety by the numeral 8, is intermediately pivoted either on or around the journals of a transverse shaft 9, which latter is journaled in suitable bearings on the sides of the case 1 and, in practice, is driven from some other suitable running part of the threshing machine.

cured on the bottom of the supplemental frame 8. The lower ends of the bell cranks 12 are connected to crank rods 14, the upper ends of which are pivoted on wrist pins 15 carried by gears 16. The gears 16 are secured to the ends of a transverse countershaft 17 journaled in suitable bearings 18 secured on top of the supplemental frame 8. The said gears 16 mesh with gears 19 secured to the ends of the powendriven shaft 9 before noted. As is evident, when the shaft 9 and, consequently, the shaft 17 are rotated, the connecting rods 14 and bell cranks 12 will impart endwise vibratory movements to the sieve equipped shoe 10. Preferably, also, the customary fan case 20 and fan 21 are carried by the supplemental frame 8.

The improved hydraulically controlled sieve leveling device, as preferably constructed, and as illustrated in the drawings, will now be described.

Jo'urnaled in suitable bearings 22 shown as applied to the bottom of the rear end of the supplemental frame 8 is a screw shaft 23, to the central portion of which is rigidly secured a pair of reversely operative ratchet wheels 24 and 25. On one side of the ratchet wheels 24 and 25, the screw shaft 23 has right threads and on the other side thereof it has left threads, and working with threaded engagement on each side thereof is a nut member or threaded traveler 26. The two nut members 26' are connected, by long reversely inclined links 27, to the longitudinally extended bottom rails 1 of the case 1. With this arrangement, as is evident, when the nut members 26 are moved toward each other, the rear end of the supplemental frame 8 will be lowered and, when the said nut members are moved away from each other, the rear end of said supplemental frame will be raised. These movements of the nut members 26 sin'iultaneously toward cranks 12. A spring 28 connects the inwardly extended ends of the pawls 28 and normally holds the same in respect to the bar 3O as best shown in Fig. 5.

Rigidly secured to transverse bars 1 which, in turn, are rigidly secured to the bottom rails 1, is a pair of upright cylinders 31 which are located one under the front and one under the rear end portions of the supplei'nental frame 8. The bottoms ef these cylinders 31 are connected by a pipe 32 and the said cylinders and the said pipe are adapted to contain water or oil or other liquids indicated by the character Z. The tops of the cylinders 31 are open to atmospheric pressure. Working in the rear cylinder 31 is a piston 33 having an upwardly extended stem 34 connected by a link 35 to the free end of the pawl-equipped bar 30. The lower end of the link 35 and the upper end of the piston rod 34 are guided by a link 36 pivotally attached thereto and to an arm 37 rigidly attached to and de pending from the rear end of the supplemental frame 8.

The operation of the hydraulically controlled leveling device is as follows: Assuming that the thresher isa traveling rig and that the shaft 19 is constantly driven, it is evident that the pawl-equipped bar 30 will be constantly vibrated endwise. When the supplemental frame 8 is in a level position, the liquid Z will seek its level in the two cylinders 31 and operating on the piston 33 will hold the free end of the bar 30 in such position that its two pawls 28 will vibrate free from and out of engagement with the teeth of the cooperating ratchet wheels 24 and 25. This statement is true no matter what may be the longitudinal inclination of the case or main framework of the machine. If, however, the machine starts to run uphill after having run on a relatively level. roadbed or ground, the immediate effect will be to throw the rear end of the supplemental frame 8 and, hence, of the shoe 10, downward, but almost instantly more of the liquid will run from the front cylinder 31 into the rear cylinder and, acting on the piston 33, will lower the free end of the bar 30 and thereby throw the upper pawl 28 into action on the ratchet wheel 24 and this will cause the screw shaft 23 to be rotated in a direction which will move the nut members 26 toward each other, thereby quickly raising the rear end of the said sup plemental frame 8. This raising movement of the rear end of the frame 8 will continue until it has been brought to a level position, whereupon the pawls 28 will again be moved into their inoperative positions in respect to the cooperating ratchet Wheels. When the machine is moved onto a down grade after having run upon a relatively level roadbed or ground, the liquid will run from the rear cylinder into the front cylinder and the piston 33 will move upward and carry the lower pawl 28 into action on the teeth of the ratchet wheel 25. This will cause the screw shaft 23 to be rotated in a direction reverse to that above noted, thereby moving the nut members 26 farther apart and thereby causing the rear end of the supplemental frame 8 to be drawn downward until the said frame has reached a level position, whereupon the said pawl 28 will again be moved into their inoperative positions. In this way, as is evident, the supplemental frame 8 Will be automatically held in a level position or immediately restored to its level position instantly after it has been moved from such level position.

The improved hydraulically controlled leveling device above described has been put into actual use and has been found highly efficient for the purposes had in view.

lVhat I claim is: Y

1. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with an oscillatory supplemental frame, of means for maintaining a predetermined position of said supplemental frame, comprising a reversible drive and a gravity actuated controller therefor.

2. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with an oscillatory supplemental frame, of means for maintaining a predetermined position of said supplemental frame, comprising a reversible drive and a hydraulic controller therefor.

3. In a machine of the kind described, the combination With an oscillatory supplemental frame, of means for automatically maintaining a predetermined position thereof, comprising a reversible pawl and ratchet device and a gravity actuated controller therefor.

4:. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with an oscillatory supplemental frame, of means for automatically maintaining a predetermined posit-ion thereof, comprising a reversible pawl and ratchet device and a hydraulic controller therefor.

5. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with an oscillatory frame, of means for automatically maintaining a predetermined position thereof, comprising a reversible drive, a pair of connected cylinders or liquid receptacles, and a piston in one of said cylinders having a connection for reversing and controlling the action of said reversible drive.

6. In a threshing machine, the combination. with a main frame and an oscillatory supplemental frame carried thereby, of a sieve-equipped shoe carried by said supplemental frame, means for vibrating said shoe, a screw shaft having connections for vertically oscillating said supplemental frame and provided with a pair of reversely acting ratchet wheels, a reciprocating bar having reversely acting pawls cooperating with said ratchet wheels, and a hyd'aulic controller for rendering the said pawls operative on the respective ratchet wheels, to thereby automatically maintain the level of said supplemental frame.

7. In a threshing machine, the combination with a main frame and a supplemental frame pivotally supported therefrom, of a vibratory sieve shoe carried by said supplemental frame, a screw shaft mounted on said supplemental frame and provided with revcrsely acting ratchet wheels, a nut member working on said screw shaft, a link connecting said nut member to said main frame, a vibratory bar provided with a pair of pawls operative one on each of said ratchet wheels, and a hydraulic controller comprising a cylinder and a cooperating piston with the said piston connected to the said vibratory bar and arranged to control the engagement of the said pawls with the said ratchet wheels, to thereby maintain the said supplemental frame in an approximately horizontal position.

8. In a threshing machine, the combination with a main frame and a supplemental frame pivotally mounted thereon, of a vibratory sieve-equipped shoe carried by said supplemental frame, a right and left threaded shaft mounted on said supplemental frame and provided with revcrscly acting ratchet wheels, nut members working on the right and left threads of said shaft, links connecting said nut member to said main frame, a vibratory bar provided with a pair of pawls operative one on each of said ratchet wheels, a pair of connected cylinders or receptacles carried by said main frame and located one near the front and one near the rear of said supplemental frame, and a piston working in one of said cylinders and connected to said vibratory bar and arranged to control the action of said pawls on the respective ratchet wheels, to thereby maintain said supplemental frame in an approximately horizontal position.

9. In a threshing machine, the combination with a main frame and supplemental frame pivotally supported thereby, of a vibratory sieve-cquipped shoe carried by said supplemental frame, means for vibrating said shoe, a right and left threaded shaft carried by said supplemental frame and provided with reversely acting ratchet wheels, nut members working on the right and left threads of said shaft, links connecting said nut members to said main frame, a vibratory bar pivotally connected at one end to said vibratory shoe and provided at its free end with a pair of pawls operative one on each of said ratchet wheels, a pair of cylinders or receptacles connected at their lower portions, located one near the front and the other near the rear of said supplemental frame and containing liquid,- and a piston In testimony whereof I afiiX my signatiire working 111 one of said cylinders and conin presence of two Witnesses.

neoted to said vibratory bar and operative to control the engagement of said paWls on AUGUST HOVLAND' respective ratchet Wheels, to thereby auto- Witnesses:

matically maintain said supplemental frame ALICE V. SWANSON,

in an approximately horizontal position. HARRY D. KILGORE.

Copies'of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

